1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of portable electronic devices and, more particularly, to a portable electronic device, detachable easel with keyboard tray, wireless keyboard and method for communicating a charging signal and a pairing code between a portable electronic device and a wireless keyboard upon establishing physical contact between the two.
2. Description of the Related Art
The following descriptions and examples are not admitted to be prior art by virtue of their inclusion within this section.
Tablet personal computers (PCs) have become increasingly more popular, as the trend for highly compact, highly powerful computing devices continues. The tablet PC (or simply “tablet”) is a fully functional personal computer with a full operating system, which is capable of running familiar productivity applications (such as Microsoft's Office™ applications), and offers the same rich connectivity to the Internet that a desktop or notebook PC provides.
The tablet is designed to work well with all types of input devices, including keyboards, styluses, and even a user's finger. The tablet typically includes a resistive or capacitive-based touch screen for receiving input from a stylus or finger, and provides effective handwriting recognition software for recognizing such input as handwritten text. In many cases, a virtual keyboard or graphical user interface (GUI) may be displayed on the touch screen for receiving input from the user. For longer documents and other applications, however, a peripheral keyboard device may provide the most efficient means for data input.
Unfortunately, using a peripheral keyboard requires the tablet user to carry the keyboard while moving from place to place. The need to carry along the keyboard, however small or compact, reduces the advantages of using a tablet. If a peripheral keyboard is to be used with the tablet, the user also needs a practical way to view the tablet display screen while entering data with the keyboard. This typically involves the use a stand to support the tablet in the desired viewing angle. Therefore, not only is the user required to carry a separate keyboard, but also a separate stand for supporting the tablet screen while the user's hands engage the keyboard. Accordingly, a need exists for an efficient way to permit a tablet user to input data into the tablet via a keyboard, without the need to carry a separate keyboard and a separate stand along with the tablet.
There are many different types of wired and wireless keyboards known in the art for use with portable electronic devices. Wireless keyboards have become increasingly popular, as their cord-free status provides more freedom of movement and cleaner workspaces. In most cases, wireless keyboards may connect with host devices (e.g. personal computers, portable electronic devices and workstations) via a wireless communication technology, such as optical or radio frequency (RF). RF technology allows wireless communications between peripheral devices and host devices without requiring alignment of the devices or a path free of obstructions between the devices. There are several RF communication protocols known in the art, including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Ultra-Wideband (UWB) to name just a few.
A pairing protocol is used to establish a wireless communication channel between a wireless keyboard (or another wireless peripheral device) and a host device (e.g., a tablet PC). The wireless keyboard may be “paired” with a host device by entering a PIN into both devices, or by broadcasting a shared key. Once the devices are successfully paired, they can communicate with each other over the wireless communication channel. However, in some environments having a large pool of wireless keyboards and tablets, it is easy for the wireless keyboards and tablets to become mismatched. When this occurs, it is often necessary to repeat the pairing process to reestablish wireless communication between the two devices.
Security is important for those using peripheral devices to enter sensitive data into a host system, such as passwords or account numbers. However, current RF communication protocols fail to provide a simple pairing protocol to establish a secure communication channel between peripheral and host devices, without requiring significant user interaction or a security key exchange over public airspace. Using the public airspace to broadcast a pairing request and to exchange security information is prone to various security breaches. For instance, an eavesdropper may try to intercept a radio transmission containing a security key.
In some cases, encryption may be used in order to protect sensitive information. Encryption is the process of encoding information in such a way that only the person (or computer) with the encryption key, a code that the devices use to encrypt or decrypt a packet of information that is transmitted to or from a device, can decipher the information. The use of encryption to facilitate secure communication between a wireless peripheral device and a host device requires both devices to be equipped with the same encryption key. A private key, or symmetric key, is an encryption/decryption key known only to the party or parties that exchange encrypted communications. Generally, systems that currently employ private key encryption technology require the person pairing the devices to manually pass the encryption key from one device to the other. This requires the user to interact with the software on the host device and typically involves a number of manual steps, such as inputting the key manually. A need, therefore, exists for an improved method for simplifying and securing the connection and pairing process between a wireless keyboard and a tablet.